Nike unveils wristband that measures motion Knoxville News Sentinel

Nike unveiled a high tech wristband Thursday purporting to answer that question. The FuelBand, with a suggested retail price of $149, displays measures of calories burned and steps taken that many weekend warriors may be familiar with through gadgets and apps already on the market. But this device also counts something called N Air Max Rea ikeFuel, billed as a way to compare different activities through one metric.

Running, dancing, skateboarding they all earn these points.

Nike measured the intensity of various actions, and recorded the corresponding motions, to create formulas to determine how much NikeFuel should be awarded when, say, Durant shoots a basketball.

Scientists who study physical activity have been using a similar process with such devices, called accelerometers, for several years to measure how much energy subjects are expending. Nike isn't releasing details about its calculations for competitive reasons, so outside researchers in the field couldn't judge whether they considered the NikeFuel totals accurate.

NikeFuel doesn't take into account factors such as a person's weight that affect the number of calories used. Patty Freedson, the chair of the kinesiology department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, said that made it difficult to compare the activities of different people.

"If a person is moving a certain amount and they weigh 100 pounds, a 200 pound person who weighs more actually expends more energy," she said.

Joel Stager, director of the Counsilman Center for the Science of Swimming at Indiana University, also noted that some athletes are more efficient than others, which also affects the amount of energy expended.

"We're making everybody equal the whole point is everybody isn't equal," he said.

Wojtek Chodzko Zajko, the department head for kinesiology and community health at the University of Illinois, said all accelerometers have some error of estimation.

"The best ones are quite accurate," he said. "The worst ones are basically pieces of junk."

In most of Freedson's research, she uses accelerometers attached to subjects' hips, which she believes is a better measure of movement than the wrist. The FuelBand won't work when Armstrong is cycling because such devices can't tell the difference between a person moving forward in a car or on a bike. It's not waterproof, so swimming can't earn points.

The FuelBand a flexible black strip with a single button weighs between .95 and 1.24 ounces depending on the size. It syncs with the Nike+ workout tracking website through a built in USB or wirelessly through Bluetooth to a free iPhone app.

Users can set a goal of how many points they want to earn in a day and compare their totals with friends through social networking. At the launch event Thursday in Manhattan attended by Armstrong, Durant and reigning 100 meter world champion Carmelita Jeter and hosted by comedian Jimmy Fallon Nike executives promoted the wristband as a way to encourage people to be more active. The desire to earn points could motivate them in ways big and small, even if it's just taking the stairs instead of the elevator.

"There's no doubt people are better at exercising if they have a partner or are in a group. Certainly they're better at exercising if there's competition," said Dr. Andrew Gregory, an assistant professor of orthopedics and pediatrics and sports medicine specialist at Vanderbilt. "In general, if this creates competition and social interaction around exercise, that's a good thing."

Then again, he believes the same effect can be created w ith a $15 pedometer that counts your steps.

Plenty of people were willing to pay the FuelBand's price tag Thursday, when the initial pre order sold out. Nike may later make more available through pre order, which would be announced on Twitter, before the device hits stores Feb. 22.

The appeal of the wristband to the company goes beyond sales of the gadget, said Charlie Denson, president of the Nike brand. A positive experience using the FuelBand's functions may make customers more likely to buy Nike sneakers and T shirts.

"One of the things we are continuing to see especially with our target consumer, our 14 , 15 , 16 year old it's not just about a transaction," he said. "In fact, the brands that believe the relationship actually ends when the transaction takes place, they aren't going to be around very long. The consumer expectation has moved up considerably around this idea that there's a relationship there. They expect it to be a one on one relationship, a one on one dialogue."

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